On December 19, 2017, at 5 p.m., a book presentation on Hungarian Americans took place at the Somogyi Library.
The author of the book is Ilona Újszászi, journalist, press secretary of the University of Szeged. Ilona compiled a book based on her interviews with Hungarians in Toledo, Ohio. The volume was published to commemorate the 25th jubilee of the sister cities of Toledo and Szeged in 2015, and the 20th anniversary of the sister counties Lucas and Csongrád in 2016.

Citation from the English version of the Certificate:

"We desire to strengthen the cooperation between the citizens of the cities of Szeged and Toledo, Ohio, to deepen the mutual trust between Hungarian and American peoples, and to actively participate in the formation of a more peaceful, freer world.
To achieve this, we desire the formation of an exchange program. Such an exchange would allow all peoples to work together, but particularly young people. We wish for a strong and lasting friendship.
We solemnly make this declaration on behalf of the cities of Szeged, Hungary and Toledo, Ohio, U.S.A.
9th October 1990. Szeged and
30th October 1990. Toledo"
(Újszászi, pp. 328.)

The book introduces ten families shown through interviews, documents, and numerous photographs. The families' stories provide an insight into the different immigration waves of the 19th and 20th centuries, right until our days. The reader gets an overview of the history of Hungarian Americans and their connections to their original homeland.
The volume contains illustrations and documents about the families and the so-called Birmingham Neighborhood, in the Eastern part of Toledo, where a significant number of Hungarians have been living. Along with personal memories of the immigrants, a descriptive analysis is also given on the Hungarian community.

The event was launched by the author, who not only gave an account on how the volume was compiled, but also provided the audience with a richly illustrated presentation through images and memories of her trip in Toledo. Ilona Újszászi collected the lifestories during a one-month US trip, in the fall of 2013, and completed her work researching archives and online databases upon return to Szeged.
The book helps to understand the lives and stories of contemporary immigrants until our days, serving as a gap-filling document in modern immigrant history.

Members of the audience got an insight into the emigration of Hungarians to the United States. At the end of the event, purchased books were signed by the author on request.